


A Century of Lonely Nights

by EmmyLouWho



Category: BBC Radio 1 RPF, One Direction (Band)
Genre: Aladdin references, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Genie/Djinn, Angst, Christina Aguilera references, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Famous Nick Grimshaw, Fluff, M/M, Magical Realism, Pining, Tiny Louis, a little bit of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-12
Updated: 2018-10-12
Packaged: 2019-07-20 05:23:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,720
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16130513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/EmmyLouWho/pseuds/EmmyLouWho
Summary: “I’m a genie, remember,” Louis says, like that explains everything.Being around Louis makes Nick feel like he’s constantly three steps behind. It’s a dizzying feeling, but not an entirely unpleasant one.*Nick was just trying to find Harry a quirky birthday present, but when he buys an antique bottle from a dusty shop, he gets more than he bargained for.





	A Century of Lonely Nights

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! 
> 
> This was written for the Grimmy Appreciation Fest 2018. Thanks to writcraft for organising it :) 
> 
> The title (and inspiration) for this fic comes from the song "Genie in a Bottle" by Christina Aguilera. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy!

There have been a lot of times that Nick has been grateful for Harry Styles. 

Harry is easily the best personal assistant that Nick has ever had, flawlessly keeping his work schedule on track and charming all the other employees at the radio station into doing him favours, and he’s also become a fantastic friend outside of work, one of the few people who’s always happy to tag along with Nick to the newest pretentious cafe he’s found, and always willing to dog-sit on short notice. 

Normally, Nick thanks his lucky stars that the universe had seen fit to bring Harry Styles into his life. Right now, however, he’s pretty sure that Harry is the root of all of Nick’s life problems. 

It’s Harry’s birthday party tonight - in just a few hours, as a matter of fact, and Nick still doesn’t have a gift to bring. He knows it’s his own fault, really, for leaving it until the last minute to try and find something, but he’s already been out at the shops all afternoon, trawling through all of his favourite vintage places, trying to find something quirky enough to give Harry for his birthday, and he has _nothing_. The worst part is Harry is a _fucking excellent_ gift giver. He always gives really amazing, well thought out presents, and Nick’s feeling the pressure to live up to that. Harry deserves something nice, and Nick’s going to find it if it kills him. 

He’s in the last shop on his list, and he’s running out of time, having already considered and discarded a vintage record player, a mosaic mirror, and a set of novelty playing cards. 

He takes one more lap around the perimeter of the dusty vintage shop for luck, and Nick’s just decided that he’ll have to settle for the mirror after all, when a cardboard box sitting alone on a corner shelf catches his eye. 

He pulls it down, and finds two bundles of tissue paper nestled inside. He carefully unwraps the first to find a miniature crystal bird ornament. Nick sets the bird back down in the box, and picks up the second bundle. He gently pulls back the wrapping, and actually gasps when he sees what’s inside. It looks like a bottle of some kind, curved glass with a stopper at the top, but it’s the colour that’s so special. It gleams as Nick moves it from side to side, the glass seeming to shimmer with all the colours of the rainbow, even in the dark and dusty shop. 

His phone beeps, startling Nick out of his stupor. It’s just a Facebook notification, reminding him about the party tonight, but it prompts Nick back into action. He quickly wraps the bottle up again in it’s tissue paper, putting it back in the box with the little crystal bird and carrying the whole thing up to the front of the shop, handing it over to the lady behind the counter. 

He forks over fifty pounds, and the shopkeeper gives him a conspiratorial wink as she hands him his receipt. A bit odd, Nick thinks, but in his experience most people that work at these kind of shops are a little bit strange. He shoves the receipt into his pocket, and heads out front to catch his Uber. 

 

☆ 

 

It’s not until Nick’s back at home, sitting cross-legged on the floor of his living room and trying to wrap Harry’s gift, that he sees the writing on the bottle. He hadn’t noticed it in the shop, but now, in the far more superior lighting of his flat, he can see that there’s definitely something there, in tiny swirly letters. 

An L, definitely, then maybe an O? 

He squints, and brings the bottle closer to his face to try and read it. He swipes at it with the sleeve of his jumper, trying to make the engraving clearer, and then the last thing he remembers before everything goes black is a flash of smoke and a pair of blue eyes. 

 

☆

 

Nick wakes up to someone poking his shoulder incessantly. He resists consciousness at first, screwing his eyes shut with a groan, but then he remembers that he had been home alone, and suddenly he’s wide awake. 

He rolls over onto his back, sitting up as quickly as he can, and he almost doesn’t notice the tiny person that goes tumbling off of his shoulder from the movement. He’s not sure that he’s not still dreaming, to be honest. It’s definitely possible that he has hit his head and is now hallucinating, because that would make much more sense. 

The tiny person - it’s a boy, Nick notices, a very human-looking boy, albeit about six inches tall - climbs back onto his feet, dusting off his tiny skinny jeans and straightening his tiny hoodie. 

“Well,” he says, and Nick startles, because he doesn’t sound squeaky at all like he had expected, rather his voice sounds like any other regular twenty-something _normal-sized_ guy you might find on the street. “I can’t say I’ve had that reaction before.”

“What?” says Nick stupidly. His head is still spinning. 

“The fainting thing,” the boy says, waving his hand vaguely in Nick’s direction. “I’ve had people shout, cry, threaten me… but I’ve never had someone pass out cold when they saw me appear.” 

“Right,” Nick says carefully, “about that.”

“About what?” the boy says, clambering up to sit on Nick’s leg. Nick watches silently as he wriggles around, making himself comfortable on Nick’s kneecap, then looks up at Nick expectantly. 

“Um, the appearing thing?”

“What about it?”

“How did you — what — I mean, _where_ —?”

“Wait, do you not _know_?” The boy looks incredulous, tiny eyebrows raised. 

“No?” Nick guesses. He’s now starting to wonder whether the barista at his favourite coffee shop might have slipped something into his latte this morning. It _had_ tasted a little different, and he had thought it was because he accidentally added almond milk instead of soy, but maybe it was something a little more serious. 

“Oh,” says the boy, and then he grins, tiny teeth gleaming under the lights. “Okay, then. I’m Louis.” 

He holds out a tiny hand, and Nick looks at it for a second before offering the boy - Louis - his pointer finger. Louis rolls his eyes, but grabs onto it and shakes it all the same. 

“Lovely to meet you, Nicholas.”

Nick startles. “How do you know my name?”

Louis grins again. “Because I’m a genie, of course.”

“A genie,” Nick says flatly. 

“Yep,” Louis says, tucking his hands under his thighs. “You rubbed my lamp, and now I’m here.” He winks at Nick, who can only stare back. 

“Your lamp?” 

Louis points over to the corner of the room, where the glass bottle from the antique shop is sitting on its side, one small spiral of smoke still pouring out of the top. Pig is standing beside it, watching it curiously. 

“Oh my god,” Nick says, covering his face with his hands. He takes a deep breath, then lets it out slowly. When he finally gets the courage to move his hands away, Louis is hovering - _literally hovering_ , Nick’s brain shrieks - in front of his face, and Nick flinches. 

Louis giggles, one hand resting on his tummy. “You’re a jumpy one, aren’t you?”

Nick glares, and it just makes Louis laugh louder. The sound gets Pig’s attention, and she trots over, not wanting to miss out on any of the fun. 

Louis gasps when he sees Pig, and instantly floats - what on earth is Nick’s life, honestly - over to her and wraps his tiny arms around her. Pig doesn’t seem fussed at all by the sudden appearance of an actual genie in their flat. Actually, she seems quite pleased, and makes happy noises as Louis perches on her back and scratches her in her favourite spot, the one right behind her ears. 

Nick watches, speechless, which is not a state he finds himself in very often. He pulls the sleeve of his jumper up, and pinches his left arm quite hard. It hurts, a lot. So he’s definitely not dreaming, then. Right. 

“You really don't look like what I thought a genie would look like.”

“And why’s that?” Louis asks, petting Pig’s head softly. 

“Well, you know, with the whole _jeans_ , and the hair…”

Louis brings a hand up to his fringe defensively. 

“Let me guess,” he drawls, “you thought genies were blue, and told a lot of jokes, and sounded an awful lot like Robin Williams.” 

Nick shrugs sheepishly. “Wait, you’ve seen Aladdin?”

“Of course I’ve seen Aladdin,” Louis says, rolling his eyes. “I live in a lamp, not under a rock.” 

Well, then. 

Nick’s phone beeps in his pocket. He pulls it out and groans when he sees the time. He should have been on his way to Harry’s ten minutes ago. 

“Shit,” Nick says. “I’ve got to go.”

“Go?” Louis says, looking interested. “Where are you going?”

“It’s my mate Harry’s birthday party tonight,” Nick explains, “I have to go get ready. I was trying to wrap his present, and then you showed up.” 

He looks forlornly at the empty box. It seemed like Harry would be getting a bottle of whatever alcohol Nick had stashed away in his cupboard instead. 

“You were going to give your friend my lamp as a birthday present?” Louis asks, sounding outraged. 

Nick shrugs. “Well, I dunno, I saw it in the shop and thought it was quite pretty.”

“It is quite pretty,” Louis agrees, looking appeased. “Alright then, I guess we’re going to a party.”

 _We?_ Nick thinks. “You want to come with me?” 

“Of course I do,” Louis says, “I love parties. Don't get much of a chance to get out of my lamp and go to them very often, though, do I?”

“But, what about - “

“Don’t worry, nobody will be able to see me.” 

Wait, can Louis actually read his mind? Is that a thing that genies do? Or is Nick just so predictable? 

“Go on then, hurry up and go get ready,” Louis says, shooing Nick in the direction of his bedroom. 

Nick opens his mouth, shuts it again, and heads into his ensuite feeling dazed. He feels a bit better after he’s scrubbed himself down in the shower, all alone and able to pretend like nothing out of the ordinary had happened. 

The peace doesn’t last long though, and as Nick’s getting dressed in his room the door bursts open, Pig running in with Louis perched on her back, holding onto her collar for balance. Nick’s already in his jeans, but he’s still got his shirt in his hands, and he shrieks, holding it up to cover his bare chest. Louis just smirks. 

“Come on Nicholas, it’s party time!”

 

☆

 

Nick thinks that walking into Harry’s party with a genie on his shoulder might be one of the weirdest things that he’s ever done, and he’s done _quite a few_ weird things in his time. 

Harry greets him at the door, cocktail glass in hand. Nick’s worried for a second that he will be able to see Louis perched primly on Nick’s shoulder, but it seems like Louis was telling the truth about his selective invisibility after all, because Harry just grins at him, tells him that he likes his shirt, and drags him through the flat to the kitchen. 

“Chill,” says Louis, watching everything going on around him with interest. “Just act like everything’s normal, for God’s sake.” 

Normal. Nick can do that.  
Maybe. 

“How’s it going, Grimmy?” Harry asks, handing him something pink and sugary looking. 

“Fine,” Nick says, just a little bit too quickly. “Everything is totally normal.”

Louis cackles, rolling around on his shoulder, and Nick fights the urge to flick him off. 

Luckily for him, it seems like Harry has already had a few of the pink drinks, because he doesn't seem to find Nick’s behaviour strange at all. 

“I like him,” Louis says. “His shirt is very shiny.” 

It is, actually, a vibrant pink silk number, buttons half undone as per Harry’s usual exhibitionist style. 

“It even matches the drinks,” Nick says. 

“What’s that?” Harry says. 

Shit. Not even five minutes in, and he’s already managing to look like a weirdo who talks to himself. 

“Oh, I said your shirt matches your drink,” Nick says, “well done, young Harold.” 

Harry preens. 

“Thanks, Grim,” he says. “C’mon, I want to show you something.” He grabs Nick’s arm, and drags him through the party. 

“This is brilliant,” Louis yells, right into Nick’s ear, over the loud music. 

Nick looks over at him, his eyes wide as he takes in everything - all the people crowding the flat, and the oversized balloons that line the walls, and the _six_ different birthday cakes that are sitting on the kitchen table. Three of the cakes have Harry’s own face on them. Naturally. 

He’s so distracted watching Louis that he doesn’t notice when Harry suddenly stops pulling him along. He walks straight into him, and only just manages to throw an arm out to the wall to stop them both from toppling over. 

“Whoops,” says Harry, tucking his curls back behind one ear. “Y’alright?”

“Yeah,” says Nick. “Fine.” 

“So what do you think?” Harry asks, gesturing to the wall they’ve stopped in front of. “I just picked it up last weekend.” 

There’s a large painting hanging on the wall, abstract lines of red and blue and green all criss-crossing each other. 

“Well, that’s ugly,” Louis announces. “It looks like a five year old painted it. With their eyes closed, probably.” 

“Love it,” Nick says, ignoring him. “Is that by the guy whose exhibition we went to the other week?” 

“Yep,” Harry grins. “It’s called _’Study of Fortitude_ ’.”

“Study of Suck-itude, more like it.” 

Nick frowns at him when Harry’s back is turned, and Louis laughs. 

“I think it’s great,” Nick tells Harry, “it really suits the space.” 

“Thanks, Grimmy!” Harry pats him on the shoulder, looking genuinely pleased that he likes his new artwork, which is so Harry-esque that Nick can’t help but be endeared. 

There’s a crash from the kitchen, and Harry runs off to go check on things, leaving Nick by himself. Or not by himself, really, he supposes, considering Louis is still there, poking the painting curiously. 

“Oi,” he says, “quit touching the artwork.” 

Louis pouts, but he drops his hand. Nick takes a big sip of the cocktail Harry had handed him. He thinks he might need a few more, if he’s going to get through the rest of the night. 

 

☆

 

Two hours later, Nick has somehow found himself sitting in Harry’s bathtub, holding a bottle of cheap red wine. Louis is there too, perched on the spout, his little legs swinging back and forth. 

Nick isn’t totally sure on the sequence of events that had led to him locking himself in Harry’s bathroom.There had been a lot of dancing, he knows that much. The party guests tonight were a mix of people that Nick knew from work, and then a whole bunch of others that knew Harry from somewhere or other. Harry was the type of person who had a lot of friends, and that was made very evident by the way that his flat was full of people, eating cake and spilling out of the doorways, and dancing wildly in Harry’s living room. Nick _loves_ dancing. His feet are sore. He wishes they weren’t sore. Hey, maybe Louis could make them not sore, he does magic, or something, right? 

“So how does this work, then?” he asks. He probably should have asked Louis that right at the start, he reckons, but now is a good a time as any for an explanation. 

“What?” Louis asks absently. He’s reading the label of one of Harry’s bath bombs very carefully. 

“The genie thing,” Nick says. “ _I’m a genie in a bo-_ " 

" - do _not_ start singing that song -”

“-bottle! You gotta rub me the right way!” Nick is a _great_ singer, honestly, Christina Aguilera would be proud of his dance moves right now, especially considering he’s sitting in a bathtub.

“Nooooo,” Louis is saying. He doesn’t look like he’s enjoying Nick’s performance. Maybe Nick should sing louder. 

He takes a deep breath. 

“IF YOU WANNA BE WITH ME - ”

“Stop, please!” Louis yells. “If I never hear that song again, it will be too soon.” 

Nick pouts. He lifts up his bottle of wine to take a sip, but it’s empty. His pout deepens. 

He looks up, and Louis is watching him. Nick thinks that Louis looks more like what he pictures a pixie would look like than a genie, what with the way he’s all sharp edges and delicate features. No wings, though, don’t pixies have wings? Nick would google it, but his phone is all the way in his pocket and that seems like _way_ too much effort right now. 

“You’re like…solid,” Nick says, instead. 

“Wow, yes, thank you, Nicholas, for that stunning observation,” Louis says, rolling his eyes. “I am in fact corporeal, well done.” 

“Shut up,” Nick whines. He’s definitely had too many of those horrible pink drinks Harry keeps handing him, and that was before he started in on the wine. “I don’t know, I just thought you’d be a little bit more, like, mist-y?”

“I’m a genie, Nick, not a bloody _ghost_.”

“You’re a fucking real-life mythical creature, Louis, what am I supposed to know?” 

Louis shrugs. “You’re very drunk, aren't you?” 

Nick isn’t totally sure, but he thinks that might be a very real possibility. He lifts one hand to his face, and it’s all tingly. 

“Yes,” he says. “I think I am.”

Louis sighs. “We should probably get you home.” 

Nick is about to protest, but then he remembers his bed. His nice fluffy bed, with loads of pillows. He thinks that might be a better place to sleep than Harry’s bath, even if it is a dead nice tub. 

“Okay,” he says, “lemme find my phone and then I’ll call us an ooh-thing.” 

“An ooh-thing?” Louis says. 

“Yeah,” says Nick, “you know, you press the buttons and then the car knows where you are and it takes you home. Like magic!”

“I have literally no idea what you’re talking about,” Louis says, one tiny eyebrow raised. 

Nick is still wiggling around, trying to get his phone out of his pocket. He’s sure his jeans hadn’t been so tight before. 

“Right,” Louis sighs. “I guess we’re doing this my way.” 

“What’s your way?” Nick asks, but then there’s a _POP!_ and a flash of smoke, and when it clears he can see that he’s sat on his own sofa back home, and not in Harry’s bathroom anymore. 

“Woah,” says Nick. “You really can do magic!” 

Louis does a tiny bow, looking bored. 

“Oh, no!” says Nick. 

“What?”

“I didn’t say goodbye to Harry! He’ll be so mad at me for leaving without even saying ’bye.”

“Why don’t you just send him a message then, tell him you weren’t feeling well so you went home?”

“Good idea,” says Nick. Louis is _so_ smart. 

_Hi Hazza,_ he types, _got very drunk and went home w Louis. sorry for not sayin bye!! happy bday, see you mnday! xx_

There. He pats his phone carefully, to say thank you. 

He sits his phone down on the coffee table, and decides to rest his eyes. Just for a minute, and then he’ll go up to bed. 

 

☆ 

 

Nick wakes up with a crick in his neck and a foul taste in his mouth. 

“Good morning, sunshine,” a voice says from somewhere to his left. “I was wondering when you’d finally wake up.” 

_Louis_ , Nick remembers. The lamp, and then Harry’s party, and the bathtub… Bloody hell. 

“time’s’it?” he asks, voice croaky. 

“Time for you to get up,” Louis says. “Pig and I are very bored.” 

He squints one eye open cautiously. Louis is perched on the arm of the sofa Nick had apparently fallen asleep on, and Pig’s sitting in her dog bed, chewing on her favourite teddy. 

“Your phone has been beeping a lot,” says Louis. “It’s very annoying.” 

If it weren’t for the fact that Nick was currently snuggled under a blanket that he definitely didn’t cover himself with last night before falling asleep, he’d think that Louis didn’t like him very much. 

He reaches over to check his phone, and then wishes he hadn’t. As well as a bunch of Twitter and Instagram notifications, he also has seven text messages from Harry. 

_who’s Louis??_ says the first one. 

_I don’t remember inviting anyone called Louis_

_did you PULL_

_get in!_

_anyway thx for coming tonight grim, hope you had fun_

_lol, coming_

_i can’t wait to hear all about it on monday!! x_

Bloody hell. 

“So, what are we doing today?” Louis says. 

Nick groans, and slowly sits up. He needs a shower, and he needs some greasy hash browns. Preferably in that order, he thinks, as he gets a whiff of his shirt. 

“What we do every Sunday, Pinky,” he says. “Brunch.”

 

☆

 

Nick possibly hadn’t thought this through. 

He’s brought them to his favourite little cafe, the one he goes to most weekends for a lazy brekky, but now he’s pretty sure that his regular waitress thinks he’s having a breakdown, or something. 

He’s had to pretend to be talking on the phone so that the people around him will stop staring at the crazy guy having an in-depth conversation with himself. 

On top of that, when he was placing his breakfast order, Louis had insisted that Nick order him his own plate of hash browns, and so now he was sitting at a table for one, with two full plates of food in front of him. Louis looks like he’s in heaven, and he’s tackling his food with gusto, his tiny cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk’s. 

Nick’s managed to get through half his own overflowing plate of scrambled eggs and hash browns, and is already feeling much better. 

“Okay,” he says. “Let me get this straight. Because I rubbed your lamp and made you appear, I automatically get three wishes? And I can wish for anything I want?” 

“Not _anything_ ,” Louis says, “there are some rules. I can’t bring back people from the other side, I can’t make anyone fall in love with you, you can’t wish for any more wishes. The basics, really. I thought you said you’d seen Aladdin? They definitely cover this stuff in that film.” 

“It’s a animated fairytale musical for children,” Nick says. “I wasn’t sure how accurate their portrayal was.” 

“Well, they take a lot of artistic liberty with our appearance, but the technicalities are surprisingly accurate,” Louis says. “Now you know!” 

Nick hums, and takes another sip of his skinny latte. “What am I supposed to wish for?”

“Surely you must have some idea of what you’d like,” Louis says. “Most people come up with their wishes pretty quickly.” 

“I can't say I’ve ever really thought about it,” says Nick. “What happens if I never make my wishes?” 

Louis narrows his eyes. “Well, I’m bound to my master until they make their wishes,” he says, carefully. 

“So you’d be stuck with me forever?” Nick asks. 

“Something like that.” 

Nick tilts his head to the side. “Huh. Wait, am I your _master_ , then?” 

“Yes,” says Louis. “Are you going to make me call you that?” 

“Nah,” Nick says. “While that would be entertaining, I think Nick will do just fine. Or Grimmy, if you like. That’s what most people call me.” 

“Great,” Louis says. “So, _Nicholas_ , what is your heart’s greatest wish, then? New car, flash holiday, fame, fortunes, unlimited hash browns?”

“I dunno, I need to think about it.” 

“There’s really _nothing_ that comes to mind?” 

Nick shrugs. 

“What are you going to tell Harry?” Louis asks, completely out of nowhere. 

Nick has absolutely no idea what he’s going to tell Harry. He’s left his messages unanswered, and he’s just hoping that Harry will have forgotten by the time he sees him at work tomorrow. Fat chance of that happening, though. 

“You saw my texts?” he asks, instead of saying any of that. 

“You really should change your settings if you don’t want people reading the messages that show up on your screen,” Louis says. “Besides, I had to entertain myself somehow while I was waiting for you to wake up and stop snoring.” 

“I do not snore,” Nick says.

“You definitely do, mate.” 

He doesn’t.

“Be quiet and eat your breakfast,” he says, and Louis grins at him, mouth full of potato. It’s oddly charming. 

 

☆

 

“Wait, so you mean to say that you’ve seen Aladdin, but you’ve never seen Mean Girls?” 

Nick’s mind is being blown right now. He’s not sure he’s ever met anyone who hasn’t seen Mean Girls. It’s basically impossible, considering how it seems like it’s on telly every other week. It’s a cultural _icon_. 

“Well, it’s not exactly like I get Netflix in my lamp, is it?” Louis says. “My last master was in 1993, and it was a little kid, so we used to watch a lot of Disney movies together.” 

“A kid?” 

“Yeah, he used up two of his wishes asking for sweets, and then the last one on making his dinosaur toys come to life. _That_ didn’t go so well.” 

“Wow,” says Nick. “Hey, what’s the coolest wish you’ve ever granted?” 

“Why?” asks Louis, “Looking for some inspiration for yours?” 

“Just curious.” 

Louis studies him for a second, then a slow grin spreads across his face. 

“Well,” he starts, “Ages ago, when I was working with Shakespeare - ”

“Hang on a second,” Nick says. “Do you mean to say that actual _William Shakespeare_ had a genie? And it was you?” 

“Yeah, of course,” Louis says, all nonchalant. “You didn’t think he came up with all those ideas all on his own, did you?” 

“Oh my god,” says Nick. “Are there any other celebrities you’ve granted wishes for?” 

“Oh yeah,” Louis says. “Loads of famous people have had a little magical help to get where they are. All the other genies I know have at least a few stories.” 

“Well, shit. Apparently everything I know is a lie.” 

Louis giggles. 

“And how _old_ are you, anyway? _Shakespeare?_ ” 

“Genies don’t age like humans do,” Louis explains. “I’ve been around for a while.” 

He looks down at his hands, and Nick wonders how long exactly ‘a while’ is. A strange look crosses over Louis’ face, but it’s gone just as quick as it came, and then he’s back to his usual grinning self, continuing on as if nothing had happened. 

“Long enough to know that there is no way that a film called _Mean Girls_ could possibly be - how did you describe it, again? Oh yeah, _a timeless classic, a veritable cinematic marvel and a cultural phenomenon._ ”

Nick rolls his eyes. “It’s a great movie, I promise.” 

Louis snorts. “I’ve read the back of the DVD, Nicholas,” he says, waving the pink case around to demonstrate. “It’s literally about girls…who are mean. How can that make a good movie? Where are the _dragons_? The _car chases_? What is a good movie without the main character bursting into a spontaneous and very catchy song?”

“Just trust me,” Nick says, smugly. “You’ll love it.” 

“Whatever,” Louis says. “I will watch your strange film, but only if you make me popcorn first.” 

Nick sighs, but goes and gets a packet out of the cupboard. As he’s watching it spin around in the microwave, popping sporadically, he muses about the irony of having his genie ordering him around. 

They watch the movie. Louis loves it. 

Nick only gloats a little.

 

☆

 

They hit a snag when it’s time to go to bed. 

Nick had managed to stay awake through the whole film, but now his eyelids feel like they’re made of cement, and he is barely managing to keep them open. 

“Right,” he says, rubbing at his eyes uselessly. “I’m off to bed, then.” 

“Oh,” Louis says. “Yep, okay.” 

Nick’s already pushed himself up off the sofa, and is halfway to the doorway when he spins around. 

“D’you need anything?” he asks. He’s been a terrible host, honestly, the first night he gets drunk and makes Louis rescue him from sleeping in a bathtub, and now he hasn’t even offered Louis a pillow, or like, a toothbrush, or anything. His mum would be horrified. 

Louis’ staring dejectedly at his bottle, sitting on Nick’s coffee table. 

It’s a bit weird, Nick thinks, looking at the bottle. Louis has such a _big_ presence, and Nick just can’t really work out how he manages to fit in such a tiny space. 

“Are you sleeping in your bottle, then?” Nick asks. It’s Louis’ house after all; Nick supposes he must have his own bed in there, and like, all his stuff. Maybe he’ll ask Louis about the logistics of it all another time, when he’s less likely to fall asleep right where he’s standing. 

“I should,” Louis says. 

“Should?”

Louis sighs. “Yeah. It’s just I spend so much time in there, you know?” 

Nick doesn’t know, but he nods anyway. 

“I spend so long trapped in there, so when I’m out it’s always a little depressing to go back in, even if it’s temporary.” 

Nick frowns. “D’you want to stay in the spare room?” 

Louis’ eyes light up, but he also looks like he’s about to protest politely, so Nick interrupts. 

“It’s no trouble, honestly. I just put clean sheets on the bed the other day, so it should be all ready for you.” 

Nick walks down the hallway, and pushes open the door to his guest room without even checking to see if Louis’ following him. He is, of course, hovering just behind him looking a little excited and a lot unsure. 

“I’d keep the door closed if you don’t want Pig joining you for a cuddle in the middle of the night,” Nick says. “Other than that, just make yourself at home.” 

Louis pops up on to the bed, and wiggles down until he’s sitting propped up on one of Nick’s decorative pillows. He looks so tiny, sitting there in the middle of the king size bed. 

“I bet Pig’s great at cuddling,” he says. 

“She snores,” Nick says. 

“So do you,” Louis retorts, grinning widely. He’s getting himself settled under the covers, wiggling the blankets around until he’s made a little cozy nest for himself. Nick watches for a moment, and then he makes himself turn around and head back to his own room. 

“Thanks,” Louis says, quietly, making Nick turn back round. “Just… thanks.” 

“Anytime,” Nick says. “Good night.” 

 

☆

 

Once Nick’s alone in his bedroom, it’s like the weight of the whole weekend hits him all at once. He’s had a very strange, very entertaining, very _confusing_ forty eight hours, and he’s exhausted. 

He goes through his night time routine, brushing his teeth and washing his face and patting on his fancy face cream. He’s too tired tonight to try and read a chapter of the crime novel that’s been sitting on his bedside table for the last six months, or even to do a cursory scroll through Instagram. He just climbs under the covers, makes sure his phone is plugged in to charge and his alarm is set, and shuts his eyes and goes to sleep.

It feels like he’s only been asleep for five minutes when he’s jostled awake by something small and sharp poking his cheek. 

“Nicholas,” Louis is whispering. “Nick, are you awake?” 

“I am now,” he grumbles. “What’s going on?” 

“Erm,” says Louis. 

Nick opens one eye. 

“Can I sleep in here?” 

Nick opens the other eye. 

“It’s just… the room was too big when I was all by myself,” Louis says, in a rush. “Is it alright if I just stay here instead? I won't bother you, I swear.” 

“Mmkay,” Nick agrees, sleepily. He’s too tired to think about how much of a bad idea this is right now. He’ll overthink it in the morning, once he’s had a coffee. 

He can feel Louis crawl over the bed, and settle himself against the other pillow. 

“Wait,” Nick says, feeling a bit alarmed. “You’re so tiny - ” “Oi!” “ - what if I roll over and squash you during the night?” 

“I’m not an ant, Nicholas,” Louis says, dryly. “You’re hardly going to squash me.” 

“But what if I _do_?” 

Louis sighs heavily. “Fine,” he says, and then there’s a _pop! _.__

__Startled, Nick reaches over and turns on the lamp on his nightstand. Louis is grinning back at him. A full-size, regular human height Louis. Nick’s glad that he’s already lying in bed, because he’s feeling a bit dizzy._ _

__“What the actual fuck,” he says._ _

__“I’m a genie, remember,” Louis says, like that explains everything._ _

__Being around Louis makes Nick feel like he’s constantly three steps behind. It’s a dizzying feeling, but not an entirely unpleasant one._ _

__“You can change your size?”_ _

__“Obviously.”_ _

__“And you’ve never done this before because?”_ _

__Louis shrugs. “It’s more fun being genie-sized,” he says. “Also seeing the look on your face right now was worth it.”_ _

__“Right,” Nick says. This is too much for his tired brain to process right now._ _

__“So now you don’t have to worry about squishing me, and we can go to sleep,” Louis says._ _

__“Dunno,” Nick murmurs. “You’re still pretty short. What are you, five two?”_ _

__“I’m _five nine_ ,” Louis hisses. “And that’s a perfectly average human height, thank you very much. Just because you’re so tall you’re practically a _lamp post_ , doesn’t make me short.” _ _

__Nick grins. He reaches over and flicks the lamp off, cuddling back up under the covers._ _

__“Good night, Louis,” he says, sweetly._ _

__Louis huffs, but he mumbles out a “g’night, Nicholas,” all the same._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Nick’s dreading walking into work on Monday morning._ _

__He’d had a pretty good night’s sleep, after all that, but once he’d woken up, everything had started going wrong._ _

__Pig had woken him up five minutes before his alarm was due to go off, nails clacking on the hardwood floors and whining to be fed. He’d gone to make himself his morning coffee, only to realise that he didn’t have any milk. He still needed the caffeine, so he’d made it black, which he hated, only to get just one sip anyway before he’d somehow managed to spill it all down his front. He’d had to go get changed, which meant he didn’t have time to do his hair properly, so it’s sitting in a curly mess on top of his head._ _

__The only bright spot in his morning had been seeing Louis, warm and soft looking, but even that had gone sour when Nick had refused to let him come to work with him. Louis had been offended, for reasons Nick couldn’t really fathom, and had stormed off in a huff. So now Nick had a ruined shirt, a terrible hairdo, and a mythical creature holding a grudge against him, and the sun wasn’t even properly up yet. Now he had to go into work and entertain the nation, and somehow figure out something to tell Harry._ _

__He spends the whole morning trying to avoid him, which is easier said than done, considering Harry is basically his glorified personal errand boy. Harry seems puzzled by Nick’s behaviour, and eventually corners him in the bathroom._ _

__“Oh, hi Hazza,” Nick says, trying for casual. “How’s it going?”_ _

__He tries to lean back against the counter, and ends up putting his hand in the sink instead. Super casual._ _

__“I’m fine, thanks,” Harry says, ever polite. “Why are you being so weird?”_ _

__“Weird?” says Nick, his voice about three octaves higher than usual. “I’m not being weird.”_ _

__“Your hand is still in the sink,” Harry points out. Nick quickly snatches it away. “And when I tried to say hello to you this morning, you pretended you couldn’t hear me because of your headphones but they weren’t even plugged in to anything.”_ _

__Nick rubs his hand over his face, and then immediately recoils, because his palm is still wet from the sink. He wipes it off on his jeans hastily, still avoiding eye contact._ _

__“Is this about Saturday night?” Harry asks._ _

__“Oh, it was a great party,” Nick says, hoping he might be able to distract him. “Good job Haz. That red velvet cake with your face printed on was dead nice, definitely worth ruining my diet for.”_ _

__“Thank you,” says Harry. “I went into this bakery one day on my way home from work - it’s down that street by the flower shop, you know the one next to the shiny gym? Anyway, I went in there to get a sausage roll, but they had this big case of cakes by the counter, with all different designs on. There was one that looked like a shark, and one that had a photo of Meryl Streep printed on, and I was trying to think of a reason why someone would need a cake with a photo of Meryl Streep printed on? So I sent a picture to Gemma. She thought it was hilarious, and - ”_ _

__Nick’s phone starts ringing. He can recognise a saving grace when he sees one, so he gives Harry an apologetic wave and ducks out of the bathroom._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__When he gets home he finds Louis sitting on the sofa, Pig curled up next to him. Louis’ got the remote in one hand, and a half empty bowl of popcorn sitting next to him, carefully placed out of Pig’s reach. Both of them are staring at the telly, where an episode of Stranger Things is playing. Pig wags her tail happily when she sees Nick, but Louis doesn’t acknowledge him until he sits down next to him, moving the popcorn bowl to the coffee table._ _

__“Nicholas,” he says, eyes wide, “Netflix is _amazing_.” _ _

__Nick laughs. “Been making up for lost time, then?”_ _

__“Yes,” says Louis. “There’s so _much_ , though. I think it might take me quite a while to get through everything I want to watch.” _ _

__Nick hums. “They’re always adding new stuff, too.”_ _

__Louis groans, which makes Nick laugh again._ _

__“Don’t worry, the telly’s not going anywhere.”_ _

__Louis mimes wiping his forehead in relief. He gives Nick a running list of all the things he’s started watching, and what he wants to watch next. It’s an eclectic list, and Nick’s pretty sure his recommendations are going to be all out of whack now._ _

__They make a stir fry for tea - or, Nick makes a stir fry for their tea while Louis sits on the kitchen counter and criticises his knife skills - and it’s nice. Really nice._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Nick has a headache._ _

__He’s had a crazy day of work, meeting after meeting keeping him at the station far longer than he’d like. The whole ride home, he’d been looking forward to relaxing on the couch with a cuppa, only to get home and find the empty milk bottle sitting on the counter, reminding him that he was supposed to pick up some more on his way home._ _

__Tea now out of the question, he plucks a can of Diet Coke out of the fridge instead, hoping that the caffeine will help. He can hear Pig’s nails clicking on the floorboards in one of the other rooms, and Louis’ tinkly laugh filtering through the walls. He waits, sipping on his Diet Coke, and sure enough, a few minutes later, Pig comes running into the room._ _

__She runs over to Nick when she spots him, wagging her tail and looking generally delighted. Nick gets a fright when Louis suddenly materialises next to them, but Pig just barks happily, and starts to chase him. Louis disappears, and then with a _pop_ , appears again hovering next to the dining table. _ _

__“We’re playing hide and seek!” he yells to Nick. “Pig is very good at this game.”_ _

__Nick can’t help but laugh, watching his dog chase Louis as he pops in and out all over the room._ _

__He leans against the doorframe, rubbing absently at his temple with his free hand, and he nearly drops his drink in fright when Louis suddenly materialises right in front of him._ _

__“Y’alright?” Louis asks. “Only you’re very quiet, and Pig and I are quite used to you talking all the time.”_ _

__“Just got a bit of a headache,” Nick says, feeling a bit caught off guard by his concern. It’s a strange realisation, the fact that he has someone other than Pig who is waiting at home for him now, someone who notices when Nick is quieter than usual and who cares, even. Thinking about that just makes his head hurt even more though, so he shoves that train of thought to the back of his mind._ _

__“You know, I could get rid of that for you,” Louis offers, head tilted to the side, and already reaching out._ _

__“That’s okay,” Nick says. “Just pop a paracetamol and I’ll be fine.”_ _

__Louis frowns. “Oh,” he says, and shoves his hands into his tiny pockets. “Alright then.”_ _

__“What?” Nick says. “What’s wrong?”_ _

__“ _Nothing_.”_ _

__Nick looks at him._ _

__Louis sighs and looks down at his feet. “It’s just… why are you even keeping me around if you’re not going to _use_ me?” he asks. “I just feel a bit _useless_ sometimes, just hanging out at your flat and playing with your dog and not doing my job, you know? I’m a genie, I’m supposed to grant wishes for my master.”_ _

__Nick frowns. “Sorry,” he says. “I didn’t realise.”_ _

__Louis sighs again. “Not your fault,” he says. “Not really. You didn’t ask for this.”_ _

__“Still.”_ _

__“Still,” Louis agrees._ _

__“Maybe I should wish for something then? Would that help?”_ _

__“I don't want you to wish for something you don’t want just for the sake of making a wish, Nicholas.”_ _

__Nick hums. “Well, how about I at least start trying to think of something that I might want to wish for, then?”_ _

__Louis smiles softly. “That sounds like a good start.”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__True to his word, Nick does try to brainstorm some good wish ideas. He even gets out a notepad and a pen and everything. The only problem is, he still can’t think of anything. Louis keeps popping in to check on him and to offer his own suggestions (“You should wish for a better taste in clothing. Or better hair. What d’you even call this?”), which are predictably unhelpful._ _

__There’s also a small part of him that suspects that his reluctance to make a wish is not entirely down to his indecisiveness, but also due to the fact that he doesn’t want Louis to leave. He’s gotten quite used to having him around, is the thing, and Pig absolutely _adores_ him. _ _

__He’d asked Louis what would happen when Nick made his final wish, and the answer had been startlingly depressing._ _

__“Well,” Louis had said with a sigh, “I get sent back into my bottle. Get to sit around for another couple of decades until someone finds it and summons me again.”_ _

__He’d gone all quiet after that, and had disappeared to go play some game with Pig in the back garden, one that Nick suspects is of Louis’ own invention and seems to feature a complicated set of rules, but which Pig thoroughly enjoys nonetheless._ _

__The whole thing had given Nick the impression that Louis wasn’t particularly looking forward to the “job” being over and going back to his bottle, but despite that, his traitorous brain is sure that Louis is just counting down the days until he can go back to peace and quiet, far away from Nick._ _

__Every time that Louis asks him if he’s ready to make a wish yet, Nick’s brain hears “Can I leave yet?”_ _

__It feels like a paper cut, a sharp flash of pain each time, which lingers around and refuses to ever heal properly, reminding him every time he presses his fingers to anything that Louis isn't his to keep._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__When Louis catches Nick frowning at another stupid tabloid headline - they’ve gone with the very original _“Grimmy’s Ratings Looking Grim”_ this time - he wants to know why Nick wouldn’t just use this opportunity to wish the critics away. _ _

__“I dunno,” Nick says, trying to figure out how to articulate his reasoning. “It feels like cheating, I suppose. Like I could wish for more listeners or whatever, but I haven’t really earned them. I don’t deserve them. It just doesn’t feel right.”_ _

__Louis hums in acknowledgement. “I guess that’s one way of looking at it,” he says._ _

__“How do you look at it?” Nick asks._ _

__“Well, I guess I view it like a tool. You’ve got something that’s bothering you, you’ve come across something that you could use to stop that thing from bothering you. If you have the opportunity to use it, why not?”_ _

__Nick tilts his head back to look at Louis properly. He’s looking back at him, face carefully blank._ _

__“I suppose that makes sense, too,” he says. He really hadn't looked at it that way before. “I’m still not going to do it.”_ _

__“I’m not surprised,” says Louis, a smirk crossing his face. “Besides, don’t these people know that the traditional ratings don’t take into account all the ways the young people listen online these days, anyway? Screw them and their dusty newspapers.”_ _

__He snatches Nick’s phone out of his hands and exits out of the browser window with a flourish._ _

__Nick can’t help but laugh, so hard that Pig comes barrelling into the room, desperate to see what she’s missing out on._ _

__“Thanks,” he says to Louis, “Really.”_ _

__Nick gives Pig a cuddle, and if he can’t help but thinking about how he wouldn't mind giving Louis a bit of a cuddle either, then he’s keeping that to himself._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__In the end, the first wish is an accident._ _

__They’d kept on sharing Nick’s room after that first time. Louis had continued to climb into bed after Nick every night, hesitantly at first and then quickly becoming a blanket hog once he got comfortable. They hadn't talked about it. For his part, the whole thing made Nick ridiculously flustered, so he just kept his mouth shut and tried not to think about it too much._ _

__Nick had gotten used to Louis grumbling every weekday morning when his alarm went off, and had gotten used to tiptoeing around the bedroom while he got ready (Louis was prone to throwing pillows at him if he made too much noise). He’d made lots of little adjustments to his daily life since Louis had appeared, and while Nick was still getting used to having another person around the flat all the time, for the most part they’d settled into a happy little routine._ _

__It’s a Monday when the inevitable happens. At stupid o’clock in the morning, his alarm starts blaring - like usual - and the Louis-shaped lump under the duvet next to him starts to wiggle - like usual._ _

__“Nicholas,” Louis says. “Make it stop.”_ _

__Nick reaches over and switches his phone alarm off quickly, then rolls over and groans into the pillow. “I wish I didn’t have to get up,” he says, voice slightly muffled by the pillow._ _

__“What did you say?” Louis says sharply._ _

__Nick rolls back over onto his back. He rubs one hand over his eyes. “I said, I wish I didn’t have to get up.”_ _

__Louis is silent, but when Nick turns his head to look at him, he’s grinning._ _

__“Nicholas,” he announces, “your wish is my command!”_ _

__“Wait, what - ” Nick starts, but there’s a _pop!_ and a flash of smoke. _ _

__When it clears, everything still looks the same at first. Louis is still sitting up on the bed next to him, beaming from ear to ear._ _

__“Your first wish,” Louis coos. “I’m so proud!” He mimes wiping away a tear, and if Nick wasn’t so confused he would probably pinch him for that one._ _

__“What?” he says, dumbly._ _

__Before Louis can explain, Nick’s phone rings. It’s his boss._ _

__“Hello?” he says, cautiously. Louis’ still fucking grinning at him, and it’s all a bit too much for Nick this early in the morning._ _

__When he hangs up the phone a few minutes later, Louis looks over at him innocently._ _

__“Who was that, then?”_ _

__“You know who it was,” Nick says. “ _Apparently_ , I don’t need to come into work today.”_ _

__“Oh?”_ _

__“In fact, I _can’t_ work today, because the whole BBC building has mysteriously shut down. The power and everything’s out, they’ve had to cancel the show for the day until they figure out what’s happening. They said this has never happened in the whole history of the station.” _ _

__“What I’m _hearing_ ,” Louis says, “is that you don’t have to get out of bed anymore.” _ _

__“Louis,” Nick says evenly. “When I said I didn’t want to get up, this wasn't exactly what I meant.”_ _

__Louis just shrugs. “All magic comes at a price,” he says sagely._ _

__Nick sighs. “Have you been binge watching Once Upon A Time again?”_ _

__“I can’t help it,” Louis whines. “It’s so _terrible_ , but I keep watching because I need to see Emma get the happy ending she deserves.”_ _

__“Maybe happy endings are just a myth,” Nick says. “Besides, that’s boring. To have everything in your life finally good and you’re happy and then it’s just the end? I think I’d rather have a happy beginning.”_ _

__Louis hums, and burrows back down into his duvet cocoon._ _

__“So, what do I do now then?” Nick asks._ _

__“I suggest we go back to sleep. Then, since you’ve suddenly gotten a free morning, maybe you can keep me company while I watch more Once Upon A Time. I’ve heard there’s a musical episode!”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Later on that day, while he’s watching Snow White and Prince Charming sing about how much they love each other, or something, Nick realises how hard it must be for Louis to be stuck in the flat all day. He’s been here for over a week now, and he hasn’t left the house since they went for brunch last Sunday. At first, he’d tried asking Nick to take him to work with him, but he’d always refused, and then Louis had just stopped asking._ _

__Thinking about it now, Nick feels a bit guilty. The reason he hadn’t wanted to take Louis to work in the first place was that he’d just needed to hold on to one part of his life that was normal - that hadn’t been flipped on its head by a magic lamp. But that’s not accurate, not really, because everything has changed. He thinks about Louis all the time when he’s at work. He thinks about him when he cues up a song that he thinks Louis might like. He spends the time in between links wondering what Louis is getting up to back at his flat. He thinks about him when he’s popping into the shops on his way home, picking up some chicken for their tea, and chucking a box of Smarties in his basket at the checkout because he knows that they’re Louis’ favourite._ _

__Basically, he’s fucked, and he need to stop lying to himself. To embrace it. Enjoy it while it lasts, even, because he knows eventually his wishes will all be gone and so will Louis._ _

__Nick decides he’s going to start doing better, that he’s going to make it his mission to make sure Louis gets to get out and explore and enjoy himself. And Nick’s going to be the one to take him. _I can show you the woooorrrld…_ he thinks, smiling to himself. That gives him an idea, actually - but first things first. _ _

__“Louis?”_ _

__“Hmm?” Louis says, still glued to the TV._ _

__“D’you want to come to work with me tomorrow?”_ _

__Louis whips around to look at him so quickly that Nick flinches. “Yes,” he says. “Please.”_ _

__“Okay,” Nick says, and Louis’ grin is blinding._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Nick’s starting to regret this, and they haven’t even gotten out of the door yet._ _

__His driver is a few minutes late, and Nick’s got one eye on his phone, waiting for the text notification that he’s arrived. His other eye is watching Louis nervously. Louis does not look nervous in the slightest. He looks absolutely ecstatic, restless like a toddler that’s had way too much red food colouring at a birthday party. That’s what’s making Nick nervous._ _

__Louis’ been switching all week between what Nick has taken to calling “full size” and “fun size,” much to Louis’ chagrin (“I’m not a bloody Mars bar, Nicholas!”). Louis had also explained that when he was in his normal genie form, nobody else would be able to see him, like when they were at Harry’s party; but when he was human-sized, then he would be visible._ _

__They’d already decided that for today, it would be better if Louis stayed in his small genie form, just to save Nick having to explain who he was. And also to limit the mischief that Louis could get up to, although now that Nick thinks about it, it might actually be worse if he’s invisible to everyone else. Either way, Nick had given Louis strict instructions not to touch anything - _especially_ any buttons, sliders, or other appealingly shiny objects. Louis had agreed (“Genie’s honour!”), but Nick is still feeling hesitant about the whole thing. _ _

__His phone vibrates with a text, and Louis cheers, hovering around Nick until he finishes patting his pockets to make sure he has everything and opens the door._ _

__“Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it’s off to work we go,” Louis sings as they climb into the car. “Do do do do do do do dooo, heigh-ho, heigh-ho!”_ _

__Nick glares at him out of the corner of his eye, but he can’t tell him off without the driver thinking he’s talking to himself, and Louis knows it._ _

__Louis stares out of the window for most of the journey, hands pressed to the glass, watching all the buildings fly by. Nick busies himself updating his Instagram story, and he’s just in the middle of tapping out a new tweet ( _”MOOOOOOORRRNIIIIIIIIIING”_ ) when he hears Louis gasp. _ _

__He lifts his head to see Louis looking back at him, grin splitting his face._ _

__“Look,” he says, pointing out the window. Nick can’t tell what exactly Louis is so fascinated by, but his excitement is contagious. He spends the rest of the trip watching Louis watching the world._ _

__On the short walk from the car into the building, Nick makes Louis promise again that he won’t do anything to get Nick in trouble. He’s pretty sure Louis isn’t even listening, too busy hovering just above his right shoulder and whipping his head around to take in all of their surroundings, but he does get a hum of acknowledgement, which will just have to be good enough._ _

__“This is where you work?” Louis asks, pointing at the BBC building._ _

__“Yep,” Nick says._ _

__“Cool,” he breathes, and then he’s zooming off towards the doors. “Come on, Nicholas!” he yells. “I want to go inside.”_ _

__They go inside, Nick a little trepidatious still. He keeps one eye on Louis, who is checking everything out with unabashed curiosity, and tries to focus on acting normally. As long as he remembers not to talk to Louis when there are other people around, he thinks he’ll be okay._ _

__The station is buzzing more than usual, everyone talking about “the weird power outage” that had happened yesterday. Nick feels a little guilty, especially when he hears someone say “It just doesn’t make any _sense_ ,” for the fifth time. Louis, on the other hand, seems to find the whole thing amusing._ _

__True to his word, Louis refrains from touching anything, but he’s constantly asking Nick “what’s this?” and then moving onto the next thing without even waiting for an answer. It’s a bit like having an invisible toddler for company._ _

__Nick can’t bring himself to be annoyed, not when Louis seems to be so happy. He’s never seen him smile so much before today, and it feels good. The energy is infectious, and it’s a great show, if Nick does say so himself._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__After that, Louis becomes a regular fixture in Nick’s work day. He doesn’t always tag along, some mornings waving Nick off grumpily and choosing to stay in bed, but most of the time he’s there, sitting on the arm of Nick’s swivel chair or propped up against one of the monitors, offering unsolicited commentary on the playlist or pulling silly faces at him while he’s trying to chat with Tina._ _

__Nick knows better than to ever admit it out loud to Louis, but he actually really enjoys his company at the station. Even when Louis isn’t there, though, it helps knowing that he’s probably listening at home online, cuddled up on the couch with Pig._ _

__Nick had caught him doing it one day, and even though Louis had tried to explain it away, saying that Pig had wanted to listen to the new Rhianna song, Louis had eventually confessed that he liked having Nick’s voice to listen to when he wasn’t at home. The memory of the way Louis’ cheeks had gone pink at that admission was enough to get Nick through even the most brutal of early mornings._ _

__He likes to give Louis shout outs on those days - “This one goes out to my friend who thinks I should play more Green Day,” and “Here’s a throwback for you all, bit of Christina Aguilera, in honour of my friend who _really_ loves this song…” - and he really likes when he gets home and Louis yells at him for it, which just proves that he was listening. _ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__On Friday night, Nick finally gets to execute his grand plan. He’s called in a favour, and he can't wait to see Louis’ face when he figures it out._ _

__He finds him sitting on the couch with Pig, scrolling through something on Nick’s phone, which makes him roll his eyes. He keeps changing his password to try and stop Louis from stealing it, but he somehow keeps on figuring it out. Nick’s quite frankly very impressed with how good Louis seems to be with all the technology, seeing as the last time he was out of his bottle it was the 1990’s._ _

__“Hiya,” Nick says, walking over to stand in front of him._ _

__“Should we get burgers tonight? Or pizza? I found a discount code for Uber Eats.” Louis doesn’t even look up from where he’s frowning at a menu on the screen._ _

__“Nah, your takeaway ordering services will not be required tonight,” Nick says._ _

__That gets Louis’ attention._ _

__“Oh?” he says. “Please tell me you’re not cooking that _salmon_ again.”_ _

__Nick rolls his eyes. “No.”_ _

__“Thank god,” Louis says, pretending to wipe his forehead in relief._ _

__Nick ignores him, and straightens up to his full height. “Put your finest trackies on,” he says, “we’re going out.”_ _

__To say Louis seems excited might be a bit of an understatement. He tries his best to get Nick to tell him where they’re going, but Nick’s determined to keep it all a surprise._ _

__He helps Louis pick out a suitable outfit, deciding on a pair of his signature unfairly tight black skinnies paired with a soft looking dark grey t-shirt and a black blazer. If it happens to match Nick’s own grey trousers and black shirt ensemble, then that’s just a coincidence._ _

__Nick’s called them an Uber, and after making friends with the driver, Louis returns his attention to hounding Nick for clues._ _

__“Are we going to a posh restaurant?” Louis asks. “A not-posh restaurant? The circus? Harry’s house? An art auction?”_ _

__“Do you _want_ to go to an art auction?” Nick asks. _ _

__“Not really,” Louis says. “But it seems like the kind of thing you might like to do for fun.”_ _

__Their car pulls up to the Prince Edward Theatre, and Nick fumbles to get his seatbelt off, rushing around to open the door for Louis, who is looking at him suspiciously. He lets Nick help him out of the car all the same, and put a hand on his back to gently guide him in the right direction._ _

__Nick can see the exact moment when Louis works it out. He takes in the lightbulbs on the marquee, the purple carpet, the glittery gold posters, and his eyes narrow._ _

__“Seriously?” he whines, and Nick cackles. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out two tickets, “ _Aladdin: The Musical_ ” printed in a swirly font. _ _

__“Front row dress circle,” Nick says, “my favourite spot. My job does come with the occasional perk.”_ _

__Louis puts up a show of complaining the whole time they’re waiting for the show to start, but the second the curtain lifts and the cast has launched into “Arabian Nights,” Louis is entranced. Nick’s glad he’s already seen the show once before, because he spends most of the first act watching Louis out of the corner of his eye instead of paying attention to the stage._ _

__During intermission, Nick buys him one of the Genie teddy bears from the merchandise stand. Louis scoffs, but he holds onto it for the rest of the night, even sitting it next to him at the restaurant they head to after the show, much to the amusement of their waiter._ _

__“Did you enjoy the show then?” Nick asks, once they’ve placed their orders and the waiter has brought them wine and a basket of crusty bread._ _

__Louis softens. “It was wonderful,” he says. “It made me wish I knew how to tap dance.”_ _

__Nick laughs. “Yeah, I have to say, I was a bit disappointed I didn’t get a Broadway-worthy song and dance routine when you showed up. Maybe we should get you one of them glittery blue outfits then, what d’you reckon?”_ _

__“Shut up,” Louis says. “I would look fabulous in anything. Besides, maybe if you’d been wearing a little vest and no shirt then I would have been more inspired.”_ _

__Nick swallows, a chunk of crusty bread sticking in his throat._ _

__“I mean, that Aladdin was _hot_ ,” Louis says. “Don’t you think so, Nicholas?” _ _

__“Um,” he says. “Yeah, abs for days.”_ _

__Louis rests his chin on his hand and sighs happily, and Nick’s starting to wish he’d brought his asthma puffer with him. Thankfully, the waiter chooses that moment to appear with their meals, effectively cutting off that topic of conversation._ _

__It’s not like Nick hadn’t realised beforehand that this whole evening he’d planned was rather date-like in nature, but he hadn’t thought that it would be a problem. Now that he’s actually here, having dinner with Louis with red wine and dim lighting it’s a bit more difficult than he anticipated to swallow down the feeling that he’d actually quite like to kiss Louis. A lot. Louis isn’t exactly making it easy, either, grinning at Nick from across the table as he sips at his wine, and talking about being _shirtless_ and just existing, really. _ _

__This is bad. Terrible, even, and also surely there is some kind of rule against it. He’s pondering the ethics of having a crush on your genie when he hears a loud “Grimmy!” from the other side of the restaurant. He recognises the voice, and looks over to see Harry ambling over towards them, a big grin on his face. For a brief moment, he considers hiding underneath the table. Louis is small, they would probably both fit._ _

__“Hey, Harry,” he says. “What are you up to tonight?” Maybe if he keeps asking Harry questions, he won’t question who Nick’s with._ _

__No such luck._ _

__“Just dinner with the lads,” Harry says. “But we’re being rude. Hi, I’m Harry,” he says, sticking out his hand for Louis to shake._ _

__“Louis, it’s nice to meet you.”_ _

__Harry gasps. “Oh, so you’re Louis!” He turns and frowns at Nick. “Grim, I can’t believe you were keeping your boyfriend a secret from me.”_ _

__Nick opens his mouth to explain that actually Louis _isn’t_ his boyfriend, but Louis cuts him off, a big shit-eating grin on his face. “Now, Nicholas, don’t tell me you’re ashamed of me?” _ _

__“No, I - ”_ _

__“You’ll have to come over for dinner soon so we can talk properly, Louis. Nick never brings anyone to our dinner parties.”_ _

__“I’d like that,” Louis says. “Nicholas has told me so many stories about his friends, it would be nice to meet you all.”_ _

__“Everyone is going to love you!” Harry promises. “I’d better get back to my table, but we’ll organise dinner for sometime next week, okay?”_ _

__He disappears as quickly as he came, leaving behind only the smell of Tom Ford and the mild panic which has descended over Nick._ _

__“ _Boyfriend?_ ” he manages to choke out. _ _

__Louis seems to find his distress amusing. “Yeah,” he shrugs. “It’s as good as explanation as any. Why? Is the idea of us dating so appalling?”_ _

__“No,” Nick says, “it’s not that - I mean - “ He lets out a sigh. “Are you sure?” he says._ _

__“Yep,” Louis says._ _

__“My friends can be a bit intense,” Nick warns. “Harry was right, I don’t really bring boyfriends around to meet them. They’re going to be all over you.”_ _

__“Don’t worry,” Louis says. “I’ve been watching a lot of rom coms lately. I think I can do the boyfriend thing well for you.”_ _

__Nick’s mouth is dry. He takes a big sip of his wine._ _

__“Let’s eat,” he says. “The food will go cold.”_ _

__He reaches for his fork, but Louis leans over and grabs his hand, entwining their fingers._ _

__Nick stares at their hands, sitting together on top of the table. “What’s this?” he asks softly._ _

__“This,” Louis says proudly, “is what I would do as your boyfriend.”_ _

__“Pretend boyfriend,” Nick says._ _

__“Sure.”_ _

__“Okay.”_ _

__If Nick holds onto Louis’ hand for the rest of the meal, using his left hand to eat his gnocchi, then he’s blaming that on the wine. It’s worth it for the way that Louis smiles at him from across the table._ _

__“Thanks,” Louis says, when they’re in the Uber home. He’s got his head resting against Nick’s side, soft and sleepy._ _

__“What for?” Nick asks, but Louis is already asleep._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__“We don’t have to do this,” Nick says, for probably the tenth time. “We can just turn around and go home, I’ll tell Harry something came up.”_ _

__“Shut up,” says Louis. “We’re going to a dinner party, not into a war zone.”_ _

__Nick opens his mouth to argue, but Louis cuts him off. “I _want_ to do this,” he says. “Please.” _ _

__Nick isn't going to deny him that, so he tries to tamp down his misgivings, and knocks on the door._ _

__Harry opens the door almost immediately, like he’d been waiting in the hallway for them to arrive, which Nick actually wouldn’t put past him._ _

__“Hi Harry,” Louis says. “We’ve brought you some wine!”_ _

__Harry takes the outstretched bottle and beams at him. “Thank you!” he says. “Please come in.”_ _

__“Wow,” Louis says, shrugging off his coat and handing it to Nick so he can hang it up. “You have a lovely home.”_ _

__“Thank you,” Harry says, looking pleased._ _

__“I especially like that painting over there,” Louis tells him, grinning at Nick over Harry’s shoulder. Nick rolls his eyes._ _

__“Oh, that’s new!” Harry says. “It’s called _Study in Fortitude_.” _ _

__“Shall we go into the dining room?” Nick asks, trying to cut Louis off before he really gets started._ _

__Harry’s obviously tipped the rest of the group off about Louis, because everyone’s already there and waiting at the table, and they cheer obnoxiously when Nick and Louis walk into the room._ _

__The girls pounce on Louis first, and he gets passed around the group for hugs and air kisses and the occasional exclamation of “Oh you’re so cute!” and “You’ve done well, haven’t you Grim?” which makes Louis preen._ _

__Louis seems to enjoy himself. As far as Nick can tell, he’s getting along really well with everyone and keeping up with their banter. He also manages to eat three servings of Harry’s special roast potatoes, which is both impressive and an excellent way to get into Harry’s good books._ _

__Nick’s actually surprised with how well the whole thing has gone, and he almost forgets that Louis isn’t _actually_ his boyfriend. It’s so easy to pretend that it’s all real when Louis cuddles up under his arm, or when Louis blushes when Nick presses a gentle kiss to his hair. It’s especially confusing because the casual touches and closeness doesn’t stop when they’re alone, it seems to be an all the time thing now. _ _

__When they’re back at home after the party, Louis is pressed up next to him on the couch just like he was at Harry’s, even though they don’t have an audience anymore._ _

__“I like your friends,” Louis says._ _

__Nick hums. “Yeah, they’re pretty great.”_ _

__Louis is quiet for a minute. “I’ve never had proper friends before.”_ _

__Nick makes a sad noise, and Louis shrugs._ _

__“Why would anyone want to be friends with me,” he says. “I’m almost always stuck in my bottle, and then on the rare occasions that I’m not, I’m out for just long enough for that person to use me to get what they want, and then I’m gone again.”_ _

__“What about your family?”_ _

__“I don’t have a family.”_ _

__Thinking about how lonely the life of a genie must be makes Nick’s heart hurt._ _

__“Is it hard?”_ _

__“Is what hard?”_ _

__“Being a genie.”_ _

__“Oh. Well, there are obviously some perks to the job…. Um, yeah, it’s not exactly the most glamorous job out there, despite what you might think.”_ _

__“Lou,” Nick breathes. “I’m sorry.”_ _

__Louis shrugs. “It is what it is,” he says. “I can’t change it, so it’s not going to do me any good to dwell on the negatives.”_ _

__They’re quiet for a minute. Louis rests his head on Nick’s shoulder._ _

__“If you could do anything in the world, what would you do?” Nick asks._ _

__“I don't know,” Louis replies. “I don’t know how to do anything - to be anything - other than this.”_ _

__“But if you could?” Nick presses. Maybe he shouldn’t be pushing it so hard, but it feels important._ _

__Louis sighs. “It’s impossible for me,” he says after a minute, “but if I could have anything in the world, I would just like to have some agency in my own life for once. Be _free_ , and have some stability, and I dunno, be able to settle down and have a proper family. Is that sad?” _ _

__“No,” Nick says, feeling like there’s a rock in his throat. “That sounds really nice.”_ _

__Louis hums, and Nick can feel the vibrations down his arm. “Doesn’t matter, anyway,” he says. “It’s your wishes we should be worried about. At least they can come true.”_ _

___I wish I could keep you,_ Nick thinks. _ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__One day, Nick confesses to Louis that he’s been thinking about getting another dog._ _

__“You know you don’t have to wish for that, right?” Louis says, raising one eyebrow at Nick. “Like, you could just go out and get another dog right now.”_ _

__So they do. They go to the same shelter where Nick had adopted Pig, years ago now, and Nick gets himself a new dog. He’s tiny, and basically vibrating out of his glossy black fur with excitement, and he drools all over Louis’ shirt while Nick’s filling out the adoption paperwork._ _

__Louis disapproves of Nick’s choice of name, but that doesn’t stop him from cuddling Stinky Blob the whole way home. “Who’s a good boy?” he says. “You’re a good boy. Sadly for you, your dad is dickhead, but don’t worry, he means well.”_ _

__“Oi,” says Nick mildly. “Stop telling my dog that I’m a dickhead. You’re going to turn him against me.”_ _

__“Oh, Nicholas,” Louis says. “You’re doing that all on your own, giving him a name like _Stinky_. What will the other dogs at the park think of him?” _ _

__“Stinky Blob Grimshaw is a perfectly good name,” Nick says. “And also it’s accurate. He is a stinky blob of a dog.”_ _

__Louis just rolls his eyes. “What do you think Pig will make of him? Do you reckon she’ll be jealous?”_ _

__“I’m not sure she’ll be bothered,” Nick muses. “She knows she’s a spoiled princess, no new baby in the family is going to change that.”_ _

__He’s right. Pig treats Stinky with an air of indifference, watching him run around Nick’s lounge room and bumping into all the furniture and then looking up at Nick as if to say, “ _Look at this undignified creature you’ve brought home, Dad, look at him_.” _ _

__Nick can’t stop taking pictures of them and putting them on his Instagram. Harry makes fun of him for it, but the effect is slightly ruined when he presents Nick with a gift bag right afterwards. The tag attached to the bag says “ _To Stinky Blob, Love Harry x_ ,” and Nick opens it to find a very shiny tiny dog collar. _ _

__“I did the bedazzling myself,” Harry explains proudly._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__“I want to try rollerskating,” Louis announces._ _

__“What?” Nick asks. He’s concentrating on his phone, trying to take the perfect photo of Pig for his insta story, but she keeps moving._ _

__“Rollerskating,” Louis says, moving so that he’s hovering right in front of Nick, completely obscuring his phone. “I want to try it.”_ _

__“Why would you want to do _that_?” Just when Nick thinks he’s gotten used to Louis’ strange requests, he comes up with something even more left field. _ _

__Louis shrugs. “It looks fun.”_ _

__“Strapping wheels to your feet and hoping for the best sounds like fun to you?”_ _

__Louis grins, a ominous glint in his eyes. “Yep.”_ _

__Nick shakes his head. “No way. I’m a grown man, there’s no way that I’m going to go rollerskating with you.”_ _

__“Suit yourself,” Louis says. “I guess I’ll just have to try and do it on my own.”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Nick has wheels strapped to his feet and he feels ridiculous._ _

__He thinks he’d really rather be anywhere else right now - except then he looks over to where Louis is lacing up his own skates, positively _beaming_ with excitement. Louis puts his bright yellow helmet on, and raps his knuckles on Nick’s own neon pink helmet. _ _

__“Are you certain you don’t want pads too?” Louis asks, gesturing to the elbow and knee pads he’s got on. “The man said it’s a lot safer for if you’re a beginner.”_ _

__“Nah,” Nick says. “I’m a - ”_ _

__“ _\- a grown man,_ ” Louis finishes, “I know.” _ _

__Nick’s insides feel like they’re having a dance party, and he puts one hand on his stomach, trying to get them to sit still. He tries to tell himself that it’s just because he’s nervous about falling over in front of loads of people. It has nothing to do with Louis, or the way that his eyes are crinkling as he grins up at Nick. Nothing at all._ _

__“C’mon, then,” Louis says, holding out his hand to pull Nick up onto his feet. Nick’s stomach does another flop. “Let’s go!”_ _

__Unsurprisingly, Nick is terrible at rollerskating. He’s managing to keep upright, but only by skating very slowly and keeping one hand out to grab hold of the side of the rink if he gets wobbly. Louis, on the other hand, is quite literally skating circles around Nick._ _

__“This is so much fun!” he shouts, dodging a few small children being pulled around by their parents so that he can come to a stop in front of Nick. “Are you having fun, Nicholas?”_ _

__“Loads,” Nick says drily._ _

__“C’mon,” Louis says. “We’ve got to get you away from the edges, doing some real skating. Otherwise you’ll never enjoy yourself.”_ _

__“I’ll fall over if I don’t have anything to hang on to,” Nick protests._ _

__“We could get you one of them stabilisers,” Louis says, pointing to a little girl next to them, holding onto a neon pink walking frame for dear life._ _

__“Very funny,” says Nick._ _

__“Well,” Louis says. “You can hang on to me, then.”_ _

__“What?”_ _

__“You can hold my hands, and I’ll skate backwards,” Louis says. “It’ll be fun.”_ _

__“Famous last words,” Nick mumbles._ _

__“What was that?”_ _

__“Nothing.” Nick sighs. “Alright, let’s do this.”_ _

__Louis cheers, and grabs Nicks hands, guiding them carefully away from the edge of the rink. “Look, Nicholas, you’re doing it.”_ _

__They do a few loops around, Nick just trying to keep his feet pointing in the right direction, letting Louis do all the hard work. He can’t get over how easily Louis has taken to it, skating around like he’s been doing this for ages, rather than just having strapped on his skates for the first time half an hour ago._ _

__Louis starts to go a little faster, and Nick tightens his grip on Louis’ hands. He’s trying to ignore the romantic connotations of what they’re doing, for his own safety. He’s barely managing to stay on his feet as it is, if he starts imagining what Louis might be like as a boyfriend - a _real_ boyfriend - then he’ll have no hope. _ _

__Nick’s brain is a traitor, though, and he can’t help picturing Louis sleep-soft and cosy, sitting by the tree on Christmas morning. Louis doing the big shop with him, picking up the sourdough loaf because he knows it’s the one that Nick likes best, even though he pretends that he doesn't eat bread. Louis meeting his family, charming his mum. He wishes he was brave enough to tell Louis how he feels, even though he knows its hopeless, but he’s just not ready for it to all come crashing down._ _

__“I think you’re ready,” Louis says._ _

__“What?” Nick says, eyes wide._ _

__“You’re ready to try skating on your own,” Louis says. He leans in closer to peer at Nick’s face. “Are you alright? You look a little pale.”_ _

__“I’m fine,” Nick says automatically. He wipes his sweaty palms on his jeans. “Okay, I’m going to give it a go,” he says. The fact that he’s even willing to try this is either a testament to his desperation to change the subject, or his dedication to doing anything that Louis wants. Either way, he’s in trouble._ _

__He takes a deep breath, and sets off. He goes slowly at first, but after a few seconds he’s actually feeling pretty confident, and he pushes a little more. He’s actually doing it. He hopes Louis is witnessing this, and he turns his head to check. “Lou!” he calls excitedly, and then there’s a yell and a crash and everything goes black._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__“I’m so sorry,” Louis says, for probably the tenth time. “I shouldn't have made you do it.”_ _

__“You didn't make me do anything,” Nick says, “so stop apologising.” The paramedic touches his leg, and Nick hisses. “I’m the one who managed to skate right into the wall,” he says through gritted teeth. “It’s all my fault.”_ _

__“You passed out,” Louis says, looking pained, which Nick thinks is a bit ridiculous considering that he’s the one currently sucking on the green whistle the nice lady had given him to help with the pain._ _

__“For about two seconds,” Nick replies, rolling his eyes. “C’mon, Grace, tell him I’m going to be fine,” he says, looking over at the paramedic, who frowns._ _

__“Well, you might have a concussion,” she says. “And you’ve definitely broken your leg.”_ _

__Louis moans into his hands._ _

__“We’ll have to take you up to hospital to get you checked out.”_ _

__Nick can’t believe how badly this day has turned out. As a result of his own stupidity, he’s facing the prospect of spending weeks trapped in a cast, and to make things worse, he’s made Louis feel so guilty about the whole thing that he’ll probably never want to spend time with Nick ever again. He wishes there was some way that he could fix this. And - oh._ _

__“Louis,” he hisses. “Come here.”_ _

__“What is it?” Louis asks, looking worried. “Should I fetch the paramedic?” He turns to call for Grace, who’s gone to fetch the stretcher so she can move Nick into the ambulance._ _

__“No, no, don’t,” Nick says. He takes a breath, trying to think clearly. He has to word this carefully. He doesn’t want to end up with no memories, or without a leg at all. “I wish that my leg was perfectly fine.”_ _

__“I know,” says Louis, “I - wait. Are you - ?”_ _

__“You heard me,” Nick says. “Quick, before she comes back.”_ _

__“Your wish is my command,” Louis says, and a cloud of smoke appears. It clears just as Grace shows up, pushing the stretcher towards them._ _

__Nick looks down at his leg, breathing a sigh of relief that it’s still there and in one piece. He wiggles his toes, and is pleased to find that he can’t feel any pain at all. He gives a thumbs up to Louis, who grins back at him._ _

__“Alright, Mr. Grimshaw,” Grace says. “Are you ready to go?”_ _

__“Actually,” Nick says. “My leg is feeling a lot better. I’m not sure I need to go to hospital.”_ _

__“That’ll just be the pain relief,” she says. “Your leg is quite broken, I’m afraid.”_ _

__“Would you mind checking again?” he asks, and he can see the paramedic physically stopping herself from rolling her eyes at him._ _

__She does lean over though, and inspect his leg, and he sees her stiffen in surprise, running her hands over where the break had been._ _

__“But - I. I could _see_ the break,” she says to herself. “I - “ she shakes her head, looking confused. “I’m afraid I’ll have to take you to hospital still, Mr. Grimshaw,” she says. “I think we need to be certain that your leg isn’t seriously injured.” _ _

__“But - “_ _

__“That’s my professional opinion,” she says. “Don’t worry, your boyfriend can come with us in the ambulance.”_ _

__“Oh,” Nick says, “he’s - ”_ _

__“Let’s go to the hospital,” Louis says, grabbing on to Nick’s hand. “Better do what this nice lady says, hey?”_ _

__Grace nods, still looking rather shaken, and gets Nick into the back of the ambulance._ _

__At A &E, they take an X-ray, which confirms that Nick’s leg is definitely not broken. He doesn’t have any signs of a concussion either, the doctor informs them, but he recommends that Louis still keep a close eye on him for the next twenty four hours, just to be on the safe side. _ _

__“Well,” Nick says, as they're walking out of the hospital. “This is going to make a good story for the radio on Monday.”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__“And we’re all very excited this morning, aren’t we, because coming up we’ve got Liam Payne on the show! Fifi’s well excited for a bit of Liam, aren’t you?”_ _

__“Oh, yeah,” Fifi says._ _

__Louis’ perched on the desk in front of Nick, sitting cross legged and peering down at the list of approved talking points from Liam’s manager._ _

__“Don’t forget about the chain, Nicholas,” Louis says. “Those pictures you showed me are ridiculous.”_ _

__“I’m hoping he’ll bring the chain with him, the Payne Chain,” Nick says into the microphone, and he can see Louis light up from the corner of his eye. “Maybe he’ll let me have a little go, what do you reckon?”_ _

__They play the new Panic at the Disco song while they wait for Liam to come into the studio (“he’s got the chain on!” Louis crows) and get set up._ _

__Liam’s a great guest. He’s smiley and chatty and perhaps a bit too forthcoming with his answers for his team’s liking, but it makes for good radio. They take a few calls from listeners and then Nick asks Liam to introduce his new single._ _

__“I actually don’t mind this,” Louis says, right into Nick’s ear, making him jump. “This guy can sing.”_ _

__Nick doesn’t answer. He takes off his headphones and pulls Liam over to the instagrim booth to get some pictures before he has to leave. Liam hands over his chain for Nick to wear, and laughs at him when he complains about how heavy it is._ _

__Liam’s got his arm wrapped around Nick, pouting for the camera, and for the last photo Nick leans in and presses a smacking kiss onto Liam’s cheek. They’re both laughing as they wait for the photos to print out, and Nick looks up to catch a glimpse of Louis, hovering in the corner and glaring at Liam, before he disappears with a _pop_. _ _

__“Louis!” he calls out, and Liam gives him an odd look._ _

__“Okay, mate?”_ _

__“Yeah,” Nick says distractedly. “Just one of my assistants, that’s all. Never mind, I’d better get back into the studio.”_ _

__He’s preoccupied for the rest of the show, the look on Louis’ face before he disappeared flashing through his mind._ _

__When Nick gets home, he expects to find Louis on the couch, probably having made a mess of the living room, but he’s nowhere to be seen._ _

__“Where’s Louis?” he asks Pig. “Where is he, girl?”_ _

__He does two laps of the house before he notices that Louis’ bottle is out again, smoking slightly where it sits on the coffee table. Nick sighs, and pulls out his phone to order a curry to eat while he waits._ _

__Louis doesn’t come out of his bottle for a whole day._ _

__There’s a small part of Nick that wants to pick it up and see if he can see inside, wants to shake it and talk to him and try to make him come out. But he knows that wouldn’t be very helpful, nor would it be very fair to Louis. He has so little autonomy in his life, so little control over his own space and over where he goes and what he does, that letting Louis go off on his own is the least he can do, even if it goes against all of his instincts._ _

__So Nick leaves the bottle on a shelf, up high where the dogs can’t get to it, and watches out of the corner of his eye as it emits spoke periodically, as if Louis’ emotions are so strong that the bottle is physically reacting to them._ _

__When Louis does emerge, late the next night, he’s got his arms crossed tightly across his chest, eyes faintly red, which makes Nick’s heart twinge._ _

__“Do you want to talk about it?” he asks. Louis shakes his head, but he comes and sits on the sofa next to Nick anyway, playing with the hem of his hoodie._ _

__“I saw you glaring at Liam while we were taking photos,” Nick says. “Were you _jealous_?”_ _

__Louis frowns. “No. Yes - I don’t know. It’s complicated.”_ _

__“Try me,” Nick says._ _

__Louis huffs. “It just made me realise some things,” he says. “Put it all in perspective.”_ _

__“What does that mean?”_ _

__“It means that you deserve someone who can be with you for real,” Louis blurts out. “A human someone, who can be a proper boyfriend, and go meet your mum, and do all the things that you want.”_ _

__“But I want _you_ ,” Nick says, finally voicing everything he’s been feeling for the last few weeks._ _

__“I want you too,” Louis says, in a tiny voice, which makes Nick’s stomach flip. “But you’re you, and I’m me, and genies like me don’t get to have nice things like you.”_ _

__“ _Louis…_ ” _ _

__“I know it was my idea to pretend to be your boyfriend for Harry,” Louis says. “And I don’t regret it, not at all. But it’s made me realise that pretending is all I’m ever going to get. I won’t ever get to be someone’s boyfriend - your boyfriend - for real, and when I was watching you with Liam… he’s everything I can never be.”_ _

__“I don’t want Liam,” Nick insists. “Not at all.”_ _

__“That’s not the point,” Louis says. “But you can't always get what you want.”_ _

__“Can’t I?” Nick asks. “I have a genie standing in front of me who can make all my wishes come true, and all I want is to be with you.”_ _

__“Nick,” Louis says, wiping at his eyes desperately. “Please don’t say that if you don’t mean it.”_ _

__“I do,” he says. “I really do mean it. I didn’t say anything before because I didn’t want you to think I was taking advantage of you.”_ _

__“I’ve been around for centuries,” Louis says with a wet laugh. “As if I’d ever let you take advantage of me.”_ _

__“So are you willing to try?” Nick asks. “Properly? Can I kiss you?”_ _

__Louis nods, and Nick lets out a breath, reaching out to take his face in both hands. “I’m going to kiss you now,” he says, and when Louis looks up at him, grinning, Nick can’t wait any longer, and leans in to press their mouths together._ _

__He feels sparks - like actual sparks, as if the air is suddenly crackling with electricity around them as they kiss, breathing shakily into each other’s mouths._ _

__“Louis,” he says. “I - ”_ _

__“I know,” Louis says. “I know.”_ _

__Nick kisses him again, as gently as he possibly can, like he’s afraid Louis might disappear into a cloud of smoke._ _

__“I’m still not sure that there is anything to try,” Louis says, when they pull apart again. “I’m still a genie, and you’re still my master. I just wish that I was a human, and that I’d met you under normal circumstances.”_ _

__“Well, if it’s the genie thing that you’re worried about, why don’t we see if there’s a way to change that?”_ _

__“Like what?” Louis asks. “I’ve been a genie for hundreds of years, I’m not sure that’s even possible.”_ _

__“Well,” Nick says, pausing for a moment. “What about Aladdin?”_ _

__“Oh, I’m sorry, do you happen to have an evil royal vizier handy?”_ _

__“No, dickhead. I _mean,_ in the movie, doesn’t Aladdin just wish for the Genie to be free? And then he wears a hawaiian shirt and goes off to Disneyland, or whatever? Can’t I do that, too?”_ _

__“I dunno,” Louis says, tilting his head to one side. “As far as I know, nobody has ever tried.”_ _

__“I want to try,” Nick says. “Please, Louis.”_ _

__Louis leans in and kisses him, shyly at first, and then before Nick knows what’s happening, he’s pressed back against the sofa, one hand in Louis hair and the other on the back of his jeans. If Pig hadn’t come into the room, whining for attention, Nick’s not sure what might have happened._ _

__He leaves Louis to play with the dogs, and goes into the kitchen to make them both a sandwich. Big emotional conversations always make him hungry._ _

__“I’ve got an idea,” Nick says, handing Louis his ham and cheese toastie. “Harry. We can ask him. He’s into all that mystic stuff, maybe he can help us figure it out.”_ _

__“We’ll have to tell him the truth,” Louis points out._ _

__Nick shrugs. “Okay.”_ _

__Louis looks surprised. “You’re okay with telling him about everything?”_ _

__“Sure,” Nick says. “He’s one of my best friends. Harry is good people.”_ _

__“Alright,” Louis says. “I guess we’re telling Harry.”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Harry laughs at Nick for about ten minutes, but at least he believes him straight away._ _

__“Only you would end up falling in love with your genie, Nick, bloody hell.”_ _

__“Hey,” Nick whines. “Can you help us or not?”_ _

__“Oh, yeah, I think so,” Harry says. “I know a guy.”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Harry’s “guy” apparently has a shop about fifteen minutes away. Once they’re done with the radio for the day, Harry leads Nick and Louis down a series of odd looking streets, until they reach an even odder looking shop._ _

__“How do you know this guy again?” Nick asks. Louis is hovering just over his right shoulder, and Nick can feel the nerves rolling off him in waves._ _

__“I’ve been here a few times to have a tarot reading,” Harry says. “Niall’s the best.”_ _

__He pushes the door open, a tinkly bell sounding as he does. They follow Harry into the shop, looking around curiously at the dark interior._ _

__Nick hangs back, takes a deep breath and then turns to Louis. “If this doesn’t work,” he says quietly. “If it doesn’t work, then I’ll just never make my third wish. You can stay with me, forever, then and we’ll - ”_ _

__“Nick,” Louis sighs. “That isn’t practical, come on.”_ _

__“I don't care about practical,” Nick insists. “I care about you.”_ _

__“This isn’t a 1960’s sitcom. It can't just be you and a genie forever.”_ _

__Nick opens his mouth to reply, but they’re interrupted by Harry, who’s got another man with him._ _

__“Hey,” Harry says, smiling brightly. “So this is Niall. Niall, this is Nick.”_ _

__“Hello,” Nick says, giving Niall a polite wave._ _

__“Hi, Nick,” Niall says, before his eyes flick to Nick’s shoulder. “Hello to you, too.”_ _

__Louis almost falls out of the air in surprise. “Nicholas,” he says. “I think he can see me.”_ _

__“Of course I can,” Niall shrugs._ _

__That makes Harry pout about being the only one who can’t see him, so Louis changes to his human size with a _pop_ that echoes throughout the small shop. He sticks close to Nick as they make their way out to the back of the shop, taking a seat at a small table. _ _

__Nick holds Louis’ hand tight as they explain the situation to Niall, who nods along as if this is something that he hears every day. It’s all a bit bizarre, but Nick likes how Niall is taking this all completely seriously._ _

__When he asks about whether it’s possible for him to use his last wish to make Louis a human (“like in Aladdin!” Harry chimes in), Niall tilts his head to the side, considering._ _

__“Well,” Niall says. “In Aladdin, he only wishes for the Genie to be _free._ In this case, you want Louis to be _human_ , that’s a more complicated process.” _ _

__“But it can be done?” Nick asks. The spark of hope in his chest is rapidly turning into a full blown wildfire._ _

__“Yes. As well as the wish, you’ll also need a potion to allow the full transformation to take place.”_ _

__“A potion?” Harry echoes._ _

__“Yeah. In order to make it, I’ll have to gather some frog spawn, a specific type of blue cheese, and of course, one of Louis’ eyelashes.”_ _

__“Really?” Louis asks, looking slightly nauseous._ _

__‘Nah, mate,” Niall laughs, slapping his own thigh. “I’m just fucking with you. It’s just a bunch of different herbs. Come back in a week and I’ll have it ready for you.”_ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__The week of waiting for Niall to prepare the potion is the weirdest week of Nick’s life._ _

__For the first few days they don’t really talk about it, instead just trying to go about their lives like normal, but it’s hanging over them like a permanent cloud, the possibilities and the impatience and the _hope_. _ _

__By day four, Nick can’t handle it anymore. He googles on his phone during songs, and by the time he gets home after work, he’s got it all organised._ _

__“We’re going away for the weekend,” he yells out to Louis the second he walks in the door. Pig and Stinky run over, clambering for attention. Louis follows shortly behind, looking confused._ _

__“This waiting is stressing us both out,” Nick says. “And when I’m stressed out I enjoy going on holidays. What about you?”_ _

__“Dunno,” says Louis. “I’ve never really been on a holiday before.”_ _

__“Well pack a bag,” Nick says. “Because we’re leaving this afternoon. Wait - do you even need a bag? Or - never mind. I’ve booked us into a B &B in the Cotswolds. We’ll get in the car, and be there in time for our tea, and then we’ll have all of tomorrow plus Sunday morning to enjoy the joys of the English countryside.”_ _

__“And then Monday the potion should be ready?” Louis asks. Nick knows it’s rhetorical, because the date is circled on the calendar hanging on the fridge in bright pink highlighter pen, not to mention the whole life-changing magical transformation aspect. Neither of them will be forgetting any time soon._ _

__Nick nods. “Monday.”_ _

__“Alright,” Louis says. “Let’s go on your romantic holiday, then!”_ _

__“I didn’t say anything about _romantic_ ,” Nick points out. _ _

__“A weekend getaway to the countryside?” Louis says. “I should hope there will be a little romance.”_ _

__Nick’s ears go pink._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__They’ve been on the road for fifteen minutes when Louis realises that “this is a _road trip_ , Nicholas! Why didn’t you tell me before?” and makes Nick pull over at the next service station and buy him a disturbing range of snacks. Nick gets a bottle of Diet Coke and a packet of crisps, but Louis fills up a Bag For Life he’s found in the back seat of the car with packets of Haribo, Maltesers, a bottle of Fanta, a questionable looking sausage roll, and a bag of Hula Hoops. Nick’s privately horrified when Louis unloads his haul on the checkout counter, but he looks so excited, so Nick just puts his card in the chip and pin machine without a word. _ _

__Once they’ve successfully obtained their “road trip snacks” and are back in the car, Louis insists that they also need to listen to appropriate “road trip music.” He commandeers Nick’s phone, and types in the password to unlock it (and Nick had just changed it this morning. He’s still not surprised). Nick had thought that the Beyonce playlist he’d had on was pretty good driving music, but apparently he was wrong. Instead, he spends the next two hours listening to what Louis deems to be an acceptable road trip playlist, which turns out to be mainly “Life is a Highway” by Rascal Flatts on repeat, with the occasional Fall Out Boy song for variety._ _

__Their room at the B &B is cute, in the decorated-by-your-well-meaning-nan kind of way. _ _

__“Look!” Louis says, holding up a red foil covered heart. “There are chocolates on our pillows!”_ _

__Nick’s more preoccupied with the bed that’s presumably hiding under the mountain of squishy-looking pillows. They’ve been sharing Nick’s bed for weeks now, so this shouldn't feel like a big deal at all, except it kind of does. Nick’s skin feels tingly with it, the way that the lady at reception had winked at them and told them she’d put them “in the honeymoon suite, my dears, is that all right?”_ _

__He looks up and sees that Louis has already eaten both of their pillow chocolates, foil wrappers discarded on the duvet, and he’s now rustling through the stack of pamphlets on the little table._ _

__“Look, Nicholas,” he says. “There’s loads of activities around here that we could do.”_ _

__“Oh yeah?” Nick asks, coming over to look over his shoulder._ _

__“Walking trails, wine tastings… wait, look at this one!” He waves a blue pamphlet in Nick’s face. “It’s called the Dancing Trousers Cookery School, Nick, we have to go to that one!”_ _

__“I - ”_ _

__“Oh, and afterwards we can go to The Butts Farm!” Louis is literally rolling around on the bed with laughter now._ _

__“That’s not a real place,” Nick says._ _

__“This pamphlet says it is,” Louis replies, shoving the paper at him. _The Butts Farm_ , it says in bold letters. _ _

__“Who’s naming these places?” Nick asks._ _

__“I don't know, but I like it,” Louis replies, digging through the stack again. “Maybe there’s some more.”_ _

__Nick sits back on the bed and feels some of the tension leave his shoulders as he listens to Louis talk animatedly. Eventually, Louis runs out of brochures to peruse, and he crawls over the bed to sit next to Nick._ _

__“Is this alright?” he asks, cuddling up to Nick’s side._ _

__“It’s perfect,” Nick says, putting one arm around Louis’ shoulders and pulling him in close._ _

__

__☆_ _

__

__Their weekend away had been amazing, but coming back home means having to face reality again. Nick has mixed feelings. He’s so ready for all the stress and waiting to be over, but he’s also still aware that there’s no guarantee that this whole magic scheme is going to work._ _

__Monday’s show is terrible. Nick’s distracted, Louis is acting up to try and hide how nervous he is, and it’s a disaster. Fifi keeps giving him questioning looks, and Nick can’t meet her eyes when he nearly misses a link for the second time in half an hour._ _

__It’s a relief when it’s finally over, and Nick can grab his jacket and leave. He ducks out of the station as quickly as he can, waving apologetically at one of the girls when they try to bring him into a conversation about the new season of Love Island. Normally, he’d like nothing more than to share his opinion about who has the best abs in the villa, but today he has much more pressing business._ _

__Louis hovers behind Nick until they’re a safe enough distance from the building, and then they duck behind a wall and Louis quickly transforms to his full size. Even though Louis had been loud and obnoxious all morning, he’s quiet on the walk to Niall’s shop, leaving Nick to try and make nervous conversation to fill in the silence._ _

__When they open the door to the shop, they’re hit with the strong scent of lavender, which makes Nick sneeze. Niall appears from nowhere, and he leads them straight out the back, where he’s got the table all set up for them._ _

__Louis’ got his bottle in one hand, and Nick’s hand in the other. Niall smiles at them from across the table. Nick tries to smile back, but it gets stuck halfway, a strange grimace at best._ _

__“Is it going to hurt?” Louis asks. Nick grips his hand tighter._ _

__“I don’t think so,” Niall says. “But I’ve not exactly done this before, so I can’t be sure.”_ _

__“Okay,” Louis says. His knuckles are going white._ _

__“This is the potion,” Niall says, handing over a ceramic mug. It says “Horan’s Mystic Shop” in bold purple letters on the side. There’s a pink liquid inside, bubbling slightly. “It’s bubblegum flavoured. You’ll need to drink the whole thing, and then we’ll get Nick to make his wish straight after.”_ _

__“Last chance to back out,” Louis says, looking up at Nick. “Are you sure you want to do this?”_ _

__“I should be asking you that,” Nick replies. “But yeah, I want this. Definitely.”_ _

__“Me too,” Louis says. “Okay, let’s do it.”_ _

__He takes a deep breath, and brings the mug up to his lips with his left hand, the left still clinging onto Nick’s like a lifeline. They all watch as Louis drinks the potion all down in one go, slamming it down on the table afterwards._ _

__Niall nods at Nick, who can feel the hair on his arms sticking up. His throat feels like it’s closing up, and he has to clear it twice before he can talk._ _

__“I wish Louis was a human,” he says, staring right into Louis’ eyes._ _

__They all hold their breath, waiting for something to happen. When nothing does, Nick can feel the tears spring to his eyes, but before he can even open his mouth to say something reassuring to Louis, there’s a loud _crack!_ , which makes everything in the shop start to rattle on the shelves. _ _

__Nick’s knocked off his chair, and when he pulls himself back up again, he glances over to check on Louis. He’s not there. It feels like he’s been kicked in the chest, and he can’t get any air in. It hasn’t worked, he’s wished Louis away, he’s never going to see him again. He can feel himself starting to panic, and he starts patting down his legs, trying to feel if his inhaler is in his pocket._ _

__“Nick,” Niall’s saying, but Nick ignores him. He doesn’t want to listen to his platitudes right now._ _

__“Nick!” Niall shouts, taking his face in his hands. He makes Nick turn around, and when he does, the breath gets knocked out of him again._ _

__Louis is standing there. He’s holding his bottle in his hands, and he's got a big grin on his face. “Look,” he says, holding it out to Nick. There’s a crack running down one side, jagged and stark against the luminous surface. “ _I’m free_ ,” he breathes. “I’m _human,_ Nick. I’m here to stay.” _ _

__“And you still want me?” Nick asks. “You don’t have the sudden urge to go and chase after David Beckham, or summat, now that you’ve got your own free will and everything?”_ _

__“Let’s call that Plan B,” Louis says, laughing and reaching over to swipe at Nick’s cheeks with the cuffs of his jumper. “I’m quite in love with _you_ , if you must know.”_ _

__“Congratulations, boys,” Niall says, startling them out of their bubble. Nick had kind of forgotten that he was still there, to be honest._ _

__“Thanks,” Nick says automatically, still staring at Louis in disbelief._ _

__“I’ll give you two a moment,” Niall says with a knowing grin. He pats Nick on the shoulder and then ducks out of the room, giving them some privacy._ _

__Louis presses closer to Nick now, wrapping his arms around his waist. “So,” he says, looking up at Nick from under his eyelashes._ _

__“So,” Nick echoes. “You’re in love with me?”_ _

__“You think I’d go through this for just anybody? Of course I love you, you idiot.”_ _

__“Oh,” Nick says. “I mean, I love you too, obviously. You know that, right?”_ _

__“I do now,” Louis says. “Now will you kiss me? I’ve been a human for five minutes already and you’ve been so busy _talking_ \- ”_ _

__Nick leans down and kisses him quiet. Louis reaches one hand up and tangles it in Nick’s hair, and Nick hopes that Niall has the good sense not to come back for a while. He tries to put all his emotions into the kiss - the overwhelming relief, the excitement, the desperate desire to keep Louis close. Louis sighs into it, and Nick’s hit with the realisation that he would probably do anything for Louis, to keep him happy and safe. Knowing how bratty Louis can be, that does not bode well for Nick’s future sanity. He can’t bring himself to mind._ _

__“Hey,” Nick says, when they finally break apart. “You got your happy ending after all.”_ _

__“No,” Louis replies, grinning at Nick. “I got my happy beginning.”_ _

**Author's Note:**

> Hi again! Thanks for reading :) 
> 
> I have had a lot of ~thoughts~ about what life would be like for the characters after the ending of this fic, so there may be an epilogue in the future if there is any interest! 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this fic, don't forget to check out the rest of the works in this fest and show all the authors some love <3


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